Hu Jintao

Hu Jintao

Hu currently holds all 3 offices required to be considered China's Paramount Leader: Communist Party General Secretary, President and Commander in Chief. But as part of a well-orchestrated succession plan, he will gradually give up his titles over the next few years, starting with the most important one-- General Secretary--next year. His presumed successor, Xi ­Jinping, will assume the ­pres­i­den­cy a year later.
2011 Lowlight: In a rare display of independence, Chinese media exposed government cover-up of a deadly bullet train crash in July.

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